Children's sports, costs up to EUR 2,000 per year: bonuses with little impact

For families, one of the most demanding items of expenditure is the children's sport: those with minors in the 6 to 8 year age group can in fact spend from one thousand up to 2,250 euro a year, for example for a football school, according to the latest report by the Moneyfarm Study Centre. The average price of a twice-weekly course, on the other hand, varies between 20 and 110 euro per month, depending on the gym or swimming pool and the city. As a result, children's sporting activities are weighing more and more heavily on family budgets, which are already under stress due to the general increase inflation, and the support measures put in place so far are completely insufficient.

Sport is practised by 5.187 million children between the ages of 3 and 17, with 74.8% of the total between the ages of 6 and 10 and 75.6% between the ages of 11 and 14. ISTAT data on the practice of sport (2024, latest update) also shows that one child in three (33.7%) between the ages of 6 and 10 years trains three or more times a week; with the same frequency, more than half of the older children between the ages of 11 and 14 years (51.4%) also 'take to the field'. Those who do not do sport, however, say they do not do it mainly due to a lack of interest and time, but there is also a high proportion of those who give up for economic reasons (10.9% between the ages of 6 and 10; 11.3% between the ages of 11 and 14).

Price increases in recent years have also affected recreational and sports services, with prices rising by 4.7% in 2022, 6.1% in 2023 and 5.2% in 2024 (Eurostat data, included in the Sport 2025 Report). Meanwhile, the current tax bonuses have remained static. There are 1.62 million Italian taxpayers who benefit from the 19% Irpef deduction on their children's sports expenses (Finance tax statistics on 2024). This includes all expenses incurred for annual membership and subscriptions, for children between 5 and 18 years of age, to sports associations, gyms, swimming pools and other facilities and sports facilities intended for amateur sports practice. The maximum deductible amount, however, is just EUR 210 per year for each child (which becomes EUR 105 if divided 50/50 between the parents): the threshold has remained the same since 2006, when Article 1, paragraph 319 of Law No 296/2006 amended Article 15 of the Tuir to introduce the tax bonus. Translated, for those with capacity, this is a tax discount of EUR 39.9. Figures that today seem to be no longer appropriate with respect to the market.

It is also recalled that, in order to benefit from the deduction, it is necessary that the expense be incurred through a traceable payment system. And the bonus is payable in full if the total income does not exceed EUR 120,000 (beyond that limit it decreases to zero with income at EUR 240,000).

There is no shortage of other bonuses to support families in this area. The Budget Law for 2025 has institutedthe Dote Famiglia, with resources amounting to 30 million euro for the year 2025, a 300 euro bonus for households with minors between 6 and 14 years of age and Isee less than 15 thousand euro, assigned through click day until funds are exhausted. A total of 80 thousand beneficiaries are eligible.